Walcott said: "That's just great. If you want to win the Carling Cup, you've got to play the best. Man City have shown this year they are very strong but at the moment they won't want to play us no matter what team we put out there.

"We've a lot of players who have been given the opportunity in the Carling Cup and have taken that chance. Hopefully, the players that are given that chance will do so again and what an atmosphere and a game to be a part of."